This is one of the more frustrating blogs I have written. Not because I didn’t have enough content, find the right words, and certainly not because I don’t have experience with the subject, but because the idea behind a leadership coach or a success coach, hell, even behind a sales coach who comes in and trains your team a new process, is still pretty misunderstood in this area. People and business owners here, and this is through no fault of their own, are still new to the concept of someone being able to bring them to the dance, so to speak.
I am headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The heart of Amish country. There are some wildly successful people to come from this town. We have Hollywood and TV actors, professional athletes, some heavy hitters in business and industry, even some pretty big names in the music world, who have either lived here or come from here. Take a look at that list. All leaders, all elite, all people who performed at their maximum level, beyond what anyone else could. So what is the common denominator between all of these highly successful people?
COACHES AND MENTORS. They had people behind them, most of which were hired to do so, to motivate them, teach them how to be perfect at their craft, and help ensure they would be always operating that their maximum possible level. So why should the business world be any different? If a world-class coach can take a kid shooting hoops in his driveway to the NBA Hall of Fame or make a Grammy award-winning artist out of the little girl who sings in the shower, then a success and leadership coach can pull off equally miraculous feats for those who are looking to succeed in any area.
The West coast has been where the boom is as far as success coaches go. This is not really a surprising fact to me, as the concept itself, still has a little woo-woo stigma around it., so, naturally, the west, being more liberal and free-thinking, would be more open to the concept of hiring somebody for the sole purpose of helping you achieve the greatness you know you deserve. Admittedly, when I first began coaching, I didn’t even I was doing it. I found myself watching a few friends and customers come to me when they would be having non-work-related problems in hopes that I would help focus their thoughts, hearts, and efforts.
So, what is a leadership/success coach? Simply put, these are people who are paid, and rightfully so, to bring out your absolute best. Decision-making skills, your perspective, goal creation, and accomplishment, are just a small sample of what we, as coaches, help with. Being your best self is pretty much a catch-all. It is sweeping and broad, so it runs the risk of pushing people away. While it is a good descriptor, form a general sense, it doesn’t properly illustrate the amount of greatness we instill and bring out in our clients. Coaches have turned five-figure earners into 7 figure earners. Coaches have turned 7 figure earners into 8 figure earners. Coaches have pulled this out while also greatly increasing our client's happiness and personal lives.
We help get you out of the funk that you are in because of something that has been weighing on you. We help you realize how great not only you are, but those around you are. We help you take that greatness and unleash it on the world. When you look in the mirror, you may feel you are poised to take on the world, but a coach will help you conquer the world, not take on. Are you a single mom who has an idea for a business? I help build your confidence to where you have little to no fear, and you show your kids that when you have a dream, you run with that dream and you work your ass off to make it a reality because that is what you want them to learn. You want to show your kids that sometimes you need help and there is nothing wrong with doing so, as a coach, I help with that.
As I said, I didn’t get into coaching, knowingly. It just happened and I realized I was phenomenal at it, but also that I was able to change people’s lives. Not just their lives, but the people’s lives around them. Change the people in their organization's lives. Most importantly, I was able to help people change the world. This is not a responsibility that any real coach takes lightly, in any fashion. Our clients well being and success is not only pivotal to our business, but they are crucial from a human decency level. If you are going to take money from a person, you need to be able to deliver the goods, more so than from an ethical and moral standpoint.
If you are going to take money from a client to retain you as their coach then you damn well better be ready to back up what you are saying. A good coach will know that their work has effects on more than just their client. A great coach considers your family with how they coach you, A world-class coach, however, will take everyone around you into consideration when they help build and mold you to be the leader, earner, and performer that you so desperately want to be. We know that how we work with you has very serious ramifications on many more people and things outside of you and your family.
The above paragraph is why I only do leadership and success coaching on a very limited basis. I want to be able to give you, my client, my absolute all. I want to make sure that I am coaching you to be your best in a way that is also the best for those around you. If you want to unlock your potential with me and go from six figures a year to seven figures a year, and you accomplish this, I only consider it a success if you have a healthy home life as well. I don’t want you to work yourself to death to where you can’t help but make a boatload of money doing it. I will only consider it a success if your family, friends, and employees, those around you, still love you and are proud of you. I want them to look up to you. I want them to hear your name and say “Man, She earned $2,000,000 last year but she did it without missing a single one of her kid's practices or events.”
That is true success, and YOU can get there. Could you do it alone? Maybe. But would a coach go a long way in providing you with the tools, motivation, and mindset necessary for you to achieve success everywhere you turn? Yes, it absolutely would. Before I wrap this up, I want to be clear why I think that the Eastern side of the US has been relatively reluctant to adopt coaching into a more mainstream thing.
Guarantees. The dreaded guarantees. They make the customer feel super safe, and the person on the other side, mostly terrified. No person can fully control everything. A coach that guarantees you will achieve the success that you are going to them for, is a coach that one hundred percent, unequivocally, does NOT have your best interests at heart. The only thing they have at heart is their wallets. Every great coach knows that the only person who can guarantee you achieve the goals as quickly and efficiently as possible, is you, the client. We can spend 24 hours a day with you, we can live with you, we can teach you every single thing we know, every single thing that makes us world-class coaches, but if you do not implement what we teach you, you are not going to reach the level you could and should reach.
There is no easy road to success, and nobody can guarantee you success. You know that. Ask any successful person you know, and they will tell you that getting to their level took a ton of work, both personally and professionally. This will never change. Our job, as coaches, our commitment, is to get you there as quickly as possible, while maintaining a healthy personal life, however, you may define healthy. A coach can help get you there, but you need to be the one to reach the top of the mountain. If you would like to learn more about my criteria as far as who I accept into my coaching program, please reach out. For all people looking to retain me as a leadership/success coach, there is a rigorous interview process, as I want to ensure that I am not taking anyone on who isn’t one hundred percent fully committed and ready to put in the work necessary to climb that mountain.
-Kyle
